Egg candling apparatus



May 10, 1938. w. A. CASWELL EGG CANDLING APPARATUS Filed July 13, 1936INVENTOR. WQZZEZ'AusZZ'Qz Qzswell,

v I BY M ATTORNEY.

Patented May 10, 1938 UNITED STATES EGG OANDLING APPARATUS Walter AustinCaswell, Winnipeg, Manitoba,

Canada Application July 13, 1936, Serial No. 90,445

, 1 Claim.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for use in examining smallobjects to visibly determine their structural parts and moreparticularly to determine and ascertain imperfections in transparent orsemi-transparent bodies such as eggs having amongst its principalobjects the provision of an apparatus which will produce a beam of lightof great intensity from an economically operated source of light.

The process of candling eggs calls for the examination of each egg by anexperienced human eye with a light placed on the side of the eggopposite from the examiners eye, such light to be of suflicientintensity as to render the egg so being examined translucent. Otherlight rays should be excluded as far as possible; and to that end, it iscustomary to place the light within a container or other lamp housing,leaving an aperture through which a portion of the light rays emittingtherefrom will strike the egg being ex amined. A tinted lens covers thelight-emitting aperture so as to produce a coloured light especiallysuitable for candling purposes and as it is necessary to employ arelatively strong light, the candle power of the light source must becomparatively high when using such tinted lens; causing a great deal ofunnecessary heat to be generated, the burning out of the lamp bulbs andalso involving considerable expense for the electric current consumed.

A further object of the invention is to provide an egg candling lampwhich may be used in connection with a standard storage battery as wellas with the ordinary lighting circuits with a minimum currentconsumption, producing a minimum degree of heat and yet produce amaximum light beam or a light beam with the required intensity forrendering eggs partially translucent, in order that an expert operatormay determine the quality and character of the eggs being examined.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a portable andself contained egg candling apparatus in which the source of light maybe easily and readily focussed to give the light beam required and onewhich will be eificient in use and comparatively inexpensive in the costof manufacture, thereby rendering the same commercially desirable.

Other objects of the invention will be in part obvious and in partpointed out hereinafter.

In order that the invention and its mode of operation may be readilyunderstood by persons skilled in the art, I have in the accompanyingillustrative drawing and in the detailed following description basedthereupon, set out an embodiment of the same.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the apparatus embodying the presentinvention.

Figure 2 is a slightly enlarged View of the apparatus removed from itssupport and showing the lamp housing partially in section.

Figure 3 is a detailed sectional view, and

Figure 4 is a detailed sectional view taken on the line 4--4 of Figure 3in the direction of the arrow points.

Referring now more particularly to the accompanying drawing wherein likeand corresponding parts are designated by similar reference charactersthroughout the several views, I have herein shewn a portable stand Iwhich may be mounted upon a table or bench or any other device where thecandling of eggs is to take place. This stand I has mounted therein astep-down transformer 2 which may be of any well known type havingcurrent supplied thereto from a plug-in cord 3. The stand I consists ofa tubular standard 4 in which is slidably mounted a supporting rod orhandle 5. A set screw 3 is provided for retaining the rod 5 in itsvertical adjusted position.

Carried by the upper end of this rod 5 is a sectional lamp housing 8comprising a substantially semi-spherica1 rear section 9 having a cy- 3lindrical sleeve it] secured to and projecting therefrom. This sleeveii! is rotatably supported within the split bearing l I formed with theupper end of the supporting rod 5 and a locking bolt I2 connects theseparated portions of this split bearing for detachably connecting thesleeve In thereto. This sleeve, I0 is also provided with an annularsemi-circular groove l3 in which rests the bolt l2 in order to preventthe sleeve from moving longitudinally within the bearing II butpermitting the sleeve 10 and the lamp housing carried thereby to freelyrevolve therein.

Slidably mounted within the sleeve I0 is a tubular electrical socket Idof a conventional type having a plug l5 detachably connected to one endthereof and this plug i5 carries a suitable conductor l6 which latter isconnected to the transformer 2. Detachably supported with in theopposite end of the socket I4 is a lamp I1. This lamp is preferably asix-volt automobile headlight bulb and when connecting the same to alighting circuit, the transformer 2 is employed, but in case thelighting circuit is not available, the transformer 2 may be removed fromthe stand l and an ordinary storage battery substituted therefor whichshould give the required current for the type of lamp H employed.

Secured to and depending from the socket I4 is a bracket I8 having anapertured lower end through which projects a stud-bolt l9 having one endpermanently attached to the supporting rod 5. Carried by this bolt I9 isa locking nut and an adjusting nut 2| and from this construction it isquite obvious that the socket l4 together with its bracket l8 may beadjusted longitudinally within the sleeve Ill and yet be retained insuch adjusted position. The outer section 22 of the housing has a lightemitting opening formed therein which is covered by a lens 23. This lensis preferably made from a green tinted glass as this latter color hasbeen approved as most acceptable for the candling of eggs. A springcontrolled locking device 24 is carried by the section 22 of the housingand retains the lens 23 within the light emitting opening thereofSurrounding this light emitting opening of the section 22 is a hood 25.The outer face of the hood 25 as well as the section 22 of the casing ispreferably painted black or the same may be made from a black hardenedrubber in order that the eggs to be tested may be placed in front of thehood 25 and prevent any refracted or reflected rays of light coming fromthe housing to strike the eggs, thereby causing a concentrated beam oflight to be directed upon the egg being so examined. The rear section 9of the lamp housing has slotted brackets 25 projecting therefrom whichare to be engaged by the pins 2! carried by the outer section 22 of thelamp housing, whereby the two sections of the lamp housing may bedetachably connected.

The rear section 9 of the lamp housing has formed therein two openingssimilar to the opening 28 shewn upon the drawing, which act as ventopenings for permitting the heat generated by the lamp l'l within thehousing to escape therefrom and at the same time, light rays from thelamp I! will be projected through these openings 28. Permanentlyattached to the housing is a handle 29 whereby the housing may bemanually rotated within the split bearing II. By the rotation of thishousing, the openings 28 will be positioned adjacent to the lower endthereof or as shewn in the drawing, whereby the light rays from the lampll may be projected downwardly upon the support I or the table or benchupon which it is mounted in order that the operator will be suppliedwith light upon the eggs or other articles positioned upon such a tableor support. An egg candling device of the character described is ofcourse to be used in a darkened room and by reversing the position ofthe openings 28 the light from the lamp may be projected at other anglesthroughout the room for illuminating purposes and yet no direct rays oflight will be projected from the forward end of the lamp housing aswould come in contact with the examiners eyes or the eggs beingexamined.

The inner wall of the section 9 of the lamp housing is preferably of aparabolic configuration and highly polished in order to serve as areflector and due to this design of reflector the rays of light from thelamp I! will be concentrated and reflected through the lens 23 in astrong beam of light. In order to regulate the intensity of this beam oflight, the lamp l'l may be focussed with respect to the lens 23 bylongitudinally moving the lamp socket l4 within the sleeve Hi. When thedesired focus has been obtained, the socket l4 may be locked in itsadjusted position.

Manifestly, the construction herein shewn is capable of considerablemodification and such modifications as come within the scope of myclaim, I consider within the spirit of my invention.

I claim:-

An egg candling device comprising in combination a sectional casingconsisting of a semispherical rear section and an outer section, meansfor detachably connecting the sections of the casing together, acylindrical sleeve formed with and projecting from the axis of said rearsec tion, supporting means, means for rotatably w.

mounting said sleeve within said supporting means, a lamp arrangedwithin said semi-spherical rear section and adjustably mounted withinsaid sleeve, a lens covered opening formed within said outer section andarranged in a path contiguous with that of the axis of saidsemi-spherical rear section, a hood projecting from said outer sectionand encircling said lens covered opening thereof, whereby a concentratedbeam of light may be directed upon an egg to be examined when placed infront of said hood, said semispherical section having light emittingopenings formed therein whereby rays of light from said lamp may be usedfor illuminating purposes, and

a handle secured to said casing whereby the latter may be manuallyrotated upon said support for causing the rays of light passing throughthe openings of said semi-spherical section to be projected at variousangles.

1 WALTER AUSTIN CASWELL.

